Resilient wheel



Sept.

M. T. wEs'rvoN RESILIEI-T WHEEL Filed May 12, 1922 lNvENToR www U. www

BY M ATTORNEYS Patented Sept. 28, 1926.

UNTED STATES Minrcii T. wnsToN, or NEW YORK, N. Y.

RESILIENT WHEEL.

Application led May 12,'

The invention described herein relates to that class of resilient wheels wherein an interior pneumatic tube is confined between a hub member and a tire member so as to give the resilience peculiar to such tubes Without exposure of the same to the shocks and wear of road contact. The present invention is a continuation in part of Il. S. Patent No. 1,431,610 granted in my name under date of Cctober 10, 1922,'wherein the construct-ion and operation of my improved resilient wheel is fully setforth. The invention desired to be claimed herein consis-ts of certain details of such whe-els as will appear from the following description with reference to the accompanying drawings in which 1" Figure 1 is a sectional view showing the part of my resilient wheel to which my present invention relat-es. Y

Figure 2 is an outside plan view of the pressure plate. Y

Figure 3 is an outside plan vie-w of the anchor plate.

Figure 4 is a section on line 4-4 of Figure 2.

Figure 5 is a section on the line 5 5 of Figure 3.

Figure 6 is a` section on the line 6 6 of Figure 3.

In the drawings the hub member 1 of the resilient wheel has a number of radial arms 2. Suitable articulate connections between the hub and rim members may be provided as follows: Pivot pins 3 in the outer ends of these arms have links 4 journaled thereon and these links are pivotally articulated with bent levers 5 which are in turn pivoted at 6 on the bracket arms 7 that extend inwardly from the part-circular plates 3 which are mounted on the inner periphery of a tire holding rim 9.

Inter-posed between the partcircular plates 3 around the inner periphery ofthe rim 9 are segemental blocks 10 provided with inwardly presented chordal surfaces which together with the inwardly presented surfaces of the. part-circular plates 8, form a seat for the outer periphery of a pneumatic tube which is interposed between the rim andaxle-contacting units of the wheel. Said pneumatic tubeI comprises an elastic inner tube 12 and an outer flexible shoe 13. Secured to the inwardly presented outer wall of the flexible shoe 13 at angularly spaced points, are a plurality of axially-flattenedA 1922. Serial No. 560,324.

pressure plates V14. Th-ese pressure plates are so located circumferentially as to form fiattened pressure areas whereby the pressure from the weight of theA vehicle is brought to bear upon the pneumatic tube. The pressure plates are secured to the shoe of the Vpneumatic tube by lugs 15 which project through the wall of the shoe and on their inne-r ends have caps 16 secured to them by screws 17. Said pressure plates are shown detached in Figures 2 and 4 and as shown in Figure 1, are arranged at points of maximum flexure where the two free ends of the bent levers 5 bear upon the pneumatic tube. Figures 3, 5 and 6 show anchor plates which, as shown in Figure 1, serve to ancho-r the pneumatic tube at the pivoted ends of bent levers 5. These anchor plates are provide-d with lugs which project thru the wall of the shoe at those points and are thus secured in position in a. manner similar to that employed in securing the pressure plates 14 in position. It is to be observed that pressure plates 14 are separate from each other and are secured to the pneumatic tube only. This construction results in a freedom of motion of these pressure plates that improves the resilient action of the wheel and saves wear and tear. The pneumatic tube is made with restricted sections which are adapted to interlock with anchor plates 24 where it is not subjected to fleXure and with unrestricted sections where' it is subject to maximum fleXure. This construction results in an undulating contour of the inner periphery of the tube and this feature permit-s the compression of this part of the tube without stretching the fabric of which the tube is made. 'Ihe outer tube is split circumferentially on its outer periphery to permit the introduction of the elastic inner tube and the attachment of the anchor and pressure plates.

I prefer to make the tube of a hatt-cned cross section at the point where the plates bear upon it so as to enable me to so distribute the load thereon as to permit the use of air of considerable reduction of pressure.

I claim 1 In a resilient wheel of the character described, an inner hub member, an outer rim member, means articulately connecting said members, a pneumatic tube located between .such members and having a plurality of sections capable of radial compression interposed between sections having no radial compression, pressure plates secured to said compressional` sections, and anchor plates secured to said noncompressi-onal sections, said pressure plates on the compressional sections being suspended from the anchor plates on the non-compressional sections by said tube alone.

2./ ln a resilientWheel7V an inner' hub member', an outer rim member, articulate connectionsbetween said members, a pneumatic tube.y comprising iattened pressure area portions for opposing the displacementy tween said hub and tread members, a pneumatic tube, circumferentially spaced anchor plates mounted on one of said members for anchoring` portions of said pneumatic tube,

said pneumatic tube being provided withV flattened pressure areas arranged intermediately to said anchored portions, and pres- Vsu're plates secured to said flattened pressure areas'around the inner periphery of said pneumatic tube for transmitting pressures t0 said articulate connections, said pneumatic tub-e being` lprovided with transition portions extending between said anchored portions and said flattened pressure area portions, said transition poitiers being unsupported along the inner" periphery Y ot they tube` between said anchor plates and said pressure plates.l

MILTON T. WnsToN. 

